If you know anything about psychology, you know it’s complicated. Why won’t it be? It’s a study of the mind, behaviour, personality and emotions- each one more complex than the other. I mean, don’t get me wrong, there are theories on simplicity- simple perception, simple cognition and to some extent, even simplification of emotions, but that’s not what I’m doing with this one. According to me, one of the most simple yet perplexing parts of psychology are the personality theories. The beauty about them lies in how easy they are to comprehend and the deeper you get into them, a small part in our brain says, “Yes, it strangely does make sense!” So hopefully, by the end of this article, you see Erik Erikson’s ‘Psychosocial theory of development’ just the way I do- a key to understanding the world around you.
Erik Eriskon was a German American psychologist who believed that personality develops in a predetermined way- eight stages of psychosocial development, from infancy to adulthood. During each stage, the person experiences a psychosocial crisis which could have a positive or negative outcome for personality development. These crises are of a psychosocial nature because they involve psychological needs of the individual (psycho) conflicting with the needs of society (social). According to the theory, successful completion of each stage results in a healthy personality whereas failure to successfully complete a stage can result in a reduced sense of self and difficulty with other stages.
1) Trust v/s Mistrust-
This stage begins at birth and continues to approximately 18 months of age. During this stage, the infant is uncertain about the world in which they live, and looks towards their primary caregiver for stability and consistency of care. If the care received is reliable and constant, the infant develops trust which they carry forward to other relationships. However, if there has been neglect and inconsistency, the infant develops a sense of mistrust which affects their perception of the world, leading to insecurities and fear. So essentially, the quality of attachment in the early stages of life can affect relationships in the future. Sense of hope is developed.
2) Autonomy v/s shame-
The second occurs between the ages of 18 months to approximately 3 years. According to Erikson, children at this stage are focused on developing a sense of personal control over physical skills and a sense of independence. The child is developing physically and becomes more mobile,discovering that he or she has many skills. If children are criticized, overly controlled, or not given the opportunity to assert themselves, they may become overly dependent on others and have low self confidence. The goal is ‘self control without the loss of self esteem.’ Sense of will is developed.
3) Initiative v/s guilt-
3 to 6 are particularly lively, rapid-developing years in a child’s life. The child begins to assert control and power over their environment by planning activities, accomplishing tasks and facing challenges. They are curious and inquisitive and will seek out answers. If initiative is dismissed or discouraged, either through criticism or control, children develop a sense of guilt. Sense of purpose is developed.
4) Industry v/s inferiority-
It is at this stage, 6-12 that the child’s peer group will gain greater significance and will become a major source of the child’s self-esteem. The child is coping with new learning and social demands. Performing well in all spheres is given importance. However, if he is constantly put down and criticized, inferiority is developed. That leads to poor social skills and constant questioning of the self.
5) Identity v/s role confusion-
Welcome to your stage! Identity v/s role confusion is present between 13 to 18 years. We explore who they are as individuals, and seek to establish a sense of self, and may experiment with different roles, activities, and behaviors. Failure to establish a sense of identity can lead to role confusion. Role confusion involves the individual not being sure about themselves or their place in society. “Who am I?, what do I want? and what will I do?” Yes, the questions that linger on at the back of your head at this very moment, are supposed to be there.
6) Intimacy v/s isolation-
Intimacy versus isolation is the sixth stage. This stage takes place during young adulthood between the ages of approximately 25 to 40 yrs. During this stage, the major focus is on forming intimate, loving relationships with other people. You need someone to rely on, make you feel better and willing to stick by you. Going back, if stage 1 wasn’t successful, you will obviously find it difficult to trust people and avoiding that commitment leads to isolation. Sense of love is developed. Real love.
7) Generativity v/s stagnation-
The main aspect of this stage is leaving your mark. People experience a need to create or nurture things that will outlast them, often having mentees or creating positive changes that will benefit other people. So when we're around 40, we want to give back to society by raising our children, being productive at work, and becoming involved in community activities and organizations. Through generativity, we develop a sense of being a part of the bigger picture. Success leads to feelings of usefulness and accomplishment, while failure results in shallow involvement in the world. Sense of care is developed.
8) Ego integrity v/s despair-
Erikson described ego integrity as “the acceptance of one’s one and only life cycle as something that had to be.” This is either the best or the worst stage. At 65+, We look back to see what kind of person you were and if we see our lives as unproductive, feel guilt about our past, or feel that we did not accomplish our life goals, we become dissatisfied and develop despair. However, Success in this stage- being content about who you are and what you did will lead to wisdom. Wisdom enables a person to look back on their life with a sense of closure and completeness, and also, accept death without fear.
Like all theories, this one has its criticisms too. Although it provided a very realistic idea of development, giving importance to the middle and late stages of adulthood, it is rather vague about the causes- having no universal mechanism that is applicable to all. So basically, his theory is more a descriptive overview of human social and emotional development that does not adequately explain how or why this development occurs.
If you’ve read till here, you must be wondering, why am I talking about this?
See the thing is, even though this theory isn’t full proof or concrete, it holds some value. It acted as a basis for other development theories and it’s just so simple. There’s stages, associated with a time period in your life and they connect to build you. Erikson coined the term “identity crisis.” He realised that sometimes, the sense of self doesn’t align with society, with others perception or even your ideal self. This theory not only tells you what’s right but even why the wrong affects you the way it might have.
Human beings are learning to learn since the day of creation. The beauty about it is how it’s so subjective- both the lessons and the learning process. Hopefully, by going deep into this theory, your mind formed a relation or even thought of an example to co-relate. Because in the end; when you’re old and retired, alone and scared, I hope you remember this very theory and tell yourself- you’re on the path to wisdom and not despair.
- By Arohi Sachar
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